Aviation Safety and Security Commons^™

Examining The Relationship Between Title 14 Code Of Federal Regulations (Cfr) Part 147 Maintenance School Aviation Maintenance Technician (Amt) Instructor Experience And Instructor Pass Rates For Airmen Certification Standards (Acs) Element Subject Areas, Richard Lyman Johnson

Theses and Dissertations

This quantitative, correlational study examined the relationship between Aviation Maintenance Technician (AMT) instructor experience and student pass rates in 14 CFR Part 147 maintenance schools. Data were collected from February to August 2025 using purposive and snowball sampling, which yielded 67 complete responses. Instructor experience, measured in months of A&P-rated maintenance work prior to teaching, ranged from 1 to 684 months (M = 253.54, SD = 197.97). Student pass rates, defined as the proportion of students passing ACS element subject area courses, ranged from .52 to 1.00 (M = .95, SD = .07). Most instructors were male, White, over 50 …

Machine Learning Techniques To Detect Anomalies In T-38 Flight Sensor Data, Sydney M. Wekamp

Theses and Dissertations

Accurate sensors are critical for ensuring the safety of aircrew. However, detecting faulty sensors remains a significant challenge for the Test Pilot School at Edwards Air Force Base in California. Current methods rely on either student pilots identifying anomalies or waiting for sensors to fail completely before repairs are made—an approach that lacks reliability and consistency. This research aims to address these shortcomings by implementing machine learning techniques to detect sensor faults proactively. To date, applying machine learning to a dataset of this size, encompassing numerous sensors on the same aircraft, is unprecedented. The project focuses on establishing strong baseline …

An Investigation Into In-Flight Loss Of Control Accidents Due To Horizontal Stabilizer Changes On The Piper Cherokee, Connor John Geran

Theses and Dissertations

Loss of Control (LOC) while in-flight in General Aviation (GA) has been the subject of intense research by academic institutions and regulatory agencies in recent years [4] [9] [11] [19] [20] [21]. This interest is primarily due to a disproportionate number of all aircraft accidents occurring within the GA category of flight, with 94% of accidents in 2022 occurring within GA, caused primarily by pilot LOC, with 42% of accidents having LOC as the listed cause. Research into this subject at FIT yielded the results that many common GA aircraft tend to experience a strong pitch up response after undergoing …

The Effect Of Weather On Atc Complexity And Traffic Volume In Washington Air Route Traffic Control Center (Zdc) High Sectors, Amber Mccraw

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of weather on ATC complexity and traffic volume in ZDC high sectors in clear vs. convective weather using the AS&T Complexity Tool. This relationship was examined from a combined sector and individual sector perspective using both raw data and daily means for ATC complexity and traffic volume. This study employed an ex post facto effects-type design that used flight trajectory data from the FAA’s System-Wide Information Management (SWIM) Flight Data Publication Service (SFDPS) and weather data from NOAA spanning the year of 2019.

The primary analysis involved raw ATC complexity …

Functional Monitoring For Run-Time Assurance Of A Real-Time Cyber Physical System, Matthew W. Gelber

Theses and Dissertations

As cyber-physical systems (CPS) become more integrated into everyday life, the security of these systems must also be considered during their development due to their ever-increasing importance. With the growth of physical components in the system, more autonomous control requirements, and increased dependence on proper functionality, verifying system safety and correct operation becomes increasingly difficult. CPS have become more complex through the combination of additional hardware and the resulting interconnected software in many layers, each requiring unique security solutions. One example of such a safety-critical CPS embedded system is the Flight Control System (FCS) of an Unmanned Aerial System (UAS). …

Visual Acquisition And Detection Of Manned Fixed-Wing Aircraft And Rotorcraft: An Analysis Of Pilots' Perception And Performance, Rania Bassou

Theses and Dissertations

In recent years, the rapid advancement of Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) has led to an increasingly complex National Airspace System (NAS), necessitating a comprehensive understanding of factors that impact pilot visual acquisition and detection of other aircraft (including manned fixed-wing, rotorcraft, and UAS). The objective of this study is to investigate factors that affect pilot performance in visually acquiring and detecting other manned-fixed wing aircraft and manned rotorcraft using a multi-method approach, incorporating qualitative and quantitative data analysis. A diverse sample of pilots with varying flight experience participated in the study. Participants were exposed to a series of flight test …

Unmanned Aerial System Integration Safety And Security Technology Ontology, Rebecca A. Garcia

Theses and Dissertations

Unmanned Aerial System (UAS) is a versatile and essential tool for law enforcement, first responders, utility providers, and the general public. Integrating the UAS into the National Airspace System (NAS) poses a significant challenge to policymakers and manufacturers. A UAS Integration Safety and Security Technology Ontology (ISSTO) has been developed in the Web Ontology Language (OWL) to aid in this integration. ISSTO is a domain ontology covering aviation topics corresponding to flights, aircraft types, manufacturers, temporal/spatial, waivers and authorizations, track data, NAS facilities, air traffic control advisories, weather phenomena, surveillance and security equipment, and events, sensor types, radio frequency ranges, …

Developing Systems Engineering And Machine Learning Frameworks For The Improvement Of Aviation Maintenance, Fatine Elakramine

Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation develops systems engineering and machine learning models for aviation maintenance support. With the constant increase in demand for air travel, aviation organizations compete to maintain airworthy aircraft to ensure the safety of passengers. Given the importance of aircraft safety, the aviation sector constantly needs technologies to enhance the maintenance experience, ensure system safety, and limit aircraft downtime. Based on the current literature, the aviation maintenance sector still relies on outdated technologies to maintain aircraft maintenance documentation, including paper-based technical orders. Aviation maintenance documentation contains a mixture of structured and unstructured technical text, mainly inputted by operators, making them …

Examining Failures Of Kc-135 Boom Assemblies Using Survival Analysis, Benjamin D. Miller

Theses and Dissertations

The purposes of this study are to confirm the applicability of survival analysis for predicting recurrent failures of a component of a military aircraft and to provide practical insights to maintenance managers and mission planners. The results of this study also can help the United States Department of Defense improve the CBM+ program. This study was able to predict recurrent failures of the component using Nelson-Aalen cumulative estimates. In addition, this study used a Cox proportional hazards regression model with shared frailty for measuring the effect of covariates on recurrent failures and unidentified heterogeneity in the model, which warranted future …

Root-Cause Analysis Of Rsaf Maintenance-Related Flight Safety Mishaps, Heaf H. Alqahtani

Theses and Dissertations

Poor maintenance is a major factor in many aviation mishaps. This is due to the fact that some maintenance activities are carried out improperly or overlooked as a result of human error. It is important to acknowledge that maintenance mistakes are a visible sign of deeper organizational issues. Therefore, adequate solutions to maintenance issues must consider organizational influences. Despite efforts to reduce the accident rate within the Royal Saudi Air Force (RSAF), the RSAF suffers from an increasing trend in mishaps attributed to maintenance. Therefore, safety data was analyzed to examine trends. Additionally, the Human Factors Analysis and Classification System …

Detection Of Rotorcraft Landing Sites: An Ai-Based Approach, Abdullah Nasir

Theses and Dissertations

The updated information about the location and type of rotorcraft landing sites is an essential asset for the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and the Department of Transportation (DOT). However, acquiring, verifying, and regularly updating information about landing sites is not straightforward. The lack of current and correct information about landing sites is a risk factor in several rotorcraft accidents and incidents. The current FAA database of rotorcraft landing sites contains inaccurate and missing entries due to the manual updating process. There is a need for an accurate and automated validation tool to identify landing sites from satellite imagery. This thesis …

Assessment Of The Skeletonization And Motion Monitoring System For The Security Efficiency Of The United States Airports, Haoruo Fu

Theses and Dissertations

The screening processes at airports, including passengers and baggage, have changed dramatically in the past twenty years. The goal of the X-ray scanning is to enhance airport screening by preventing passengers from carrying weapons and contraband. X-ray is more effective compared to traditional pat-down. The X-ray shoots beams through passengers and their baggage, which provides an inner view to the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) screeners. Issues and concerns of the use of X-ray have also been raised, as some passengers complained about possible health issues due to the body exposure of radioactive waves; other experts pointed out possible human factor …

Unmanned Aerial System Integration Into The National Airspace System And Airports: Risk Mitigation Using Content Analysis Methodology, Bhoomin Bhupendrabhai Chauhan

Theses and Dissertations

Over the last few years, the use of unmanned aerial systems (UAS) has significantly increased. With an increase in the use of UASs, the number of UAS sightings near manned aircraft and airports have also increased, as shown by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA)(FAA, 2019a). Although not every near sighting had a severe consequence associated with it, the risks were still present. As UASs are becoming more readily available to the general public, the risks present due to UASs flying in the National Airspace System (NAS) and near airports is also increasing. For the study, incident and accident reports were …

Multi-Path Automatic Ground Collision Avoidance System For Performance Limited Aircraft With Flight Tests: Project Have Medusa, Kenneth C. Gahan

Theses and Dissertations

A multi-path automatic ground collision avoidance system (Auto-GCAS) for performance limited aircraft was further developed and improved to prevent controlled flight into terrain. This research includes flight test results from the United States Test Pilot School's Test Management Project (TMP) titled Have Multi-Path Escape Decisions Using Sophisticated Algorithms (MEDUSA). Currently, the bomber and mobility air- craft communities lack an Auto-GCAS. The F-16 Auto-GCAS was proven successful for fighter-type aircraft with seven aircraft and eight lives saved from 2014 to 2018. The newly developed and tested Rapidly Selectable Escape Trajectory (RSET) sys- tem included a 5-path implementation which continuously updated at …

Simulation And Piloted Simulator Study Of An Automatic Ground Collision Avoidance System For Performance Limited Aircraft, James D. Carpenter

Theses and Dissertations

The F-16 Automatic-Ground Collision Avoidance System (Auto-GCAS) has been a resounding success since implementation in Nov 2014, saving 8 pilots and 7 aircraft from Controlled Flight into Terrain (CFIT). However, there is no implemented Auto- GCAS for "heavy" performance limited aircraft. This research endeavors to expand on the success of F-16 Auto-GCAS to other aircraft in the Air Force inventory such as the C-130, C-17, and B-1. MIL-STD-1797 classifies performance limited aircraft as large, heavy, and low to medium maneuverability. Using a stitched Learjet-25D model (LJ-25D), an Auto-GCAS algorithm was developed to predict multiple escape-maneuver trajectories, compare these paths to …

Development And Investigation Of An Air Transportation Operations Safety Climate Scale, Matthew D. Roberts

Theses and Dissertations

Safety is of critical importance in many industries, and the US Air Force is no exception. Since 2005, the US Air Force has experienced more than 119 on-duty air and ground fatalities as well as 520 off-duty ground fatalities. One of the more dangerous environments in the U.S. Air Force and the civilian industry is air transportation operations where the fatal injury rate is higher than the national average. However, peer-reviewed safety research focusing on air transportation operations is practically non-existent, both in the military and civilian context. Therefore, safety research that helps us better understand how to shape safety …

A Comparison Of Airline Passengers' Perception And Attention Toward Onboard Safety Briefing Video Presentations, Yousef Aba Alkhail

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study is to determine the effect of the type of safety demonstration on a passenger's perception and attention. Furthermore, the study examined if there are gender differences based on participant gender. The design utilizes a two-study approach. Study 1 used Florida Tech College of Aeronautics students. For Study 1, the design for Florida Tech Aeronautics students was a mixed design using one within subjects variable and one between subjects variable. This study was a nonrandomized, posttest-only design. Experimental conditions were counterbalanced. The ANOVA analysis of Study 1 demonstrated that there was no significant interaction between gender …

Consumers’ Level Of Trust In Using An Automated Train, Aircraft, Or Vehicle As A Transportation Means, Vivalda Alexandra Patin

Theses and Dissertations

Automation is a growing technology within most industries. It is expected that automated systems may replace human functions in the near future. The purpose of this study was to determine whether factors such as: type of passenger, type of transportation, and type of operating system have an effect on consumers’ level of trust when it comes to automation in terms of transportation. In order to accomplish this task, an experimental study was conducted with 735 participants who were recruited via Amazon’s ® Mechanical Turk ®. The study provided participants with a questionnaire where they were presented with different scenarios such …

Trust In Automation: A Study Of Helicopter Pilot Perception On Enhanced Flight Vision Systems (Efvs), Nicholas Colby Currie

Theses and Dissertations

Trust in automation is a growing field of research that serves a vital role in understanding how humans interact with modern technology. Though automation is certainly becoming more prevalent in many professions, it has become a mainstay in the modern helicopter cockpit. One particular piece of modern aviation technology that incorporates a significant amount of automation is Enhance Flight Vision Systems (EFVS). EFVS technology provides pilots with a wealth of information that enables them to “see” under low visibility conditions, thereby increasing their situational awareness. Though the benefits of EFVS technology are easily recognizable, it is still an automated system …

System Wide Trust Contagion Effect, Rian M. Mehta

Theses and Dissertations

Trust is integral in any service industry, especially in the consumeroriented field of aviation. The first step of this research is the reorganization of the importance of trust. To understand its importance on the industry, it is necessary to study trust and its effects in depth. The purpose of this study is to further explore the relationship between the passengers’ trust in automation, and trust in humans. Oftentimes, when automation fails, some human is responsible for harboring the blame. The theory of System Wide Trust (SWT) has only been recently developed, but its effect on the field of aviation is …

Airline Consumers’ Perception Of Transport Security Administration’S Prohibited Items, Clayton Ernest D'Souza

Theses and Dissertations

There has been limited research conducted and significantly limited scholarly articles on consumer attitudes towards the current TSA prohibited items list. If the research were to be conducted a year after the September 11, 2001 attacks, the results of the research would be negatively skewed, indicating the majority of passengers would approve of the TSA prohibited list. But after almost thirteen years since the devastating act of terrorism and no major attempt to repeat a similar terrorist activity, would airline consumers continue to fly if the TSA amended the prohibited items list and allowed passengers to bring on liquids and …

Secure Ads-B: Towards Airborne Communications Security In The Federal Aviation Administration's Next Generation Air Transportation System, Richard C. Agbeyibor

Theses and Dissertations

The U.S. Congress has mandated that all aircraft operating within the National Airspace System, military or civilian, be equipped with ADS-B transponders by the year 2020. The ADS-B aircraft tracking system, part of the Federal Aviation Administration's NextGen overhaul of the Air Transportation System, replaces Radar-based surveillance with a more accurate satellite-based surveillance system. However, the unencrypted nature of ADS-B communication poses an operational security risk to military and law enforcement aircraft conducting sensitive missions. The non-standard format of its message and the legacy communication channels used by its transponders make the ADS-B system unsuitable for traditional encryption mechanisms. FPE, …

Ballistic Flash Characterization Of Entry-Side Flash, David J. Peyton

Theses and Dissertations

Aircraft survivability is a broad subject that encompasses many fields and subjects. An important part of aircraft survivability is fire prevention. Flashes created by ballistic impacts are a very real threat to aircraft because they can start fires or cause explosions. In an effort to better protect against these flashes, this study seeks to further the understanding and characterization of them. Recent research on this subject has been greatly helped by the use of high-speed video footage of flash events. This footage has led to new algorithms and methodologies for how to characterize a flash. A preliminary predictive model of …

Impact Of Decision Criteria On Federal Aviation Administration Certification Of Military Commercial Derivative Aircraft, Michael S. Low

Theses and Dissertations

The decision regarding whether to maintain Federal Aviation Administration certification of military commercial derivative aircraft (MCDA) can be extremely difficult due to the subjective nature of some of the associated costs and benefits. The purpose of this research is to help decision makers understand the level of impact those costs and benefits have on their decision, and how that impact may change over the life cycle of the MCDA fleet. Data regarding the various criteria involved in such decisions were collected from subject matter experts using the Delphi technique. This information was then incorporated into a decision support tool that …

Impact Of Self-Reported Biases And Familiarity In A Baggage Screening Context, Scott W. Halwes

Theses and Dissertations

A common assumption is that items that evoke strong emotions are more easily recognized than items that do not evoke strong emotions (Bessette-Symons, 2008). For example, items such as guns or knives may evoke strong emotions within some people, and it may be presumed that these items may be more easily recognized by people that have strong emotions associated with them. If this is true, then perhaps these people would be more apt to locate these items in situations such as baggage screening services that rely on accurate detection of weapons for the public's safety. This study explores this reasoning …

Avian Hazard Advisory System (Ahas): An Evaluation Of Ahas Accuracy As A Predictive Tool In Bird Strike Risk Assessment For Civil Aviation, Inger Catherine Oyoko

Theses and Dissertations

The problem of bird strikes began when human aviators made their first ventures in flight and joined birds in an already crowded environment. In the decades following these first flights, the bird strike problem has resulted in numerous fatalities and millions of dollars worth of damaged or destroyed aircraft in both civil and military aviation. The problem has been further exacerbated by the technological leaps in the aviation industry such as the increase in the number of aircraft and engines on an aircraft, the introduction of the jet engine, and also faster, quieter more efficient engine design making aircraft harder …

Microelectromechanical Systems (Mems) Interrupter For Safe And Arm Devices, Steven S. Mink

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis addresses the development of a new micro-scale interrupter mechanism for a safe and arm device used in modern weapon systems. The interrupter mechanism often consists of a physical barrier that prevents an initial source of energy, in an explosive train, from being transferred to subsequent charges. In general, when the physical barrier is removed, the weapon is considered armed, and the charge is allowed to propagate. Several issues facing current safe and arm devices systems are the shrinking industrial base for manufacturing these devices and the desire for modern safe and arm devices to be compatible with next …

The Effect Of Post-9/ 11 Security Requirements On Aviation Higher Education And Aviation Higher Education Student Attitudes Toward The United States, Richard G. Ham, Sr.

Theses and Dissertations

This study investigates the effect of security measures implemented as a result of the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001 on aviation higher education and how the measures affected aviation higher education students' attitudes toward the United States. The underlying premise of the study is that international persistence represents the ultimate indicator of economic and cultural effect on higher education while international student attitudes provide insight into possible causes of eroding international relationships that lead to terrorism. This is a sequential mixed methods study using a qualitative interview pilot study as the foundation, followed by a quantitative survey and ending …

Multimission Aircraft Design Study-Operational Scenarios, Nevin Coskuner

Theses and Dissertations

In the most recent years, the Command, Control and Communications, Counter Measures, Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (C3CMISR) aircrafts are used commonly in many NATO and UN Operations around the world. These aircrafts are AWACS, JSTARS, Rivet Joint, Compass Call and ABCCC. They provide close air support in the name of airborne surveillance, ground moving target surveillance, target reconnaissance, jamming, and command, control and communications issues in operational environments. Those aircrafts are tasked with a wide variety of missions than ever before in operational theaters and each one of them comprises a specific amount of cost and risk factors. As a …

The Air Force Operational Risk Management Program And Aviation Safety, Matthew G. Cho

Theses and Dissertations

Aviation mishaps are extremely costly in terms of dollar value, public opinion, and human life, The Air Force drastically reduced Class A mishap rates in its formative years. The rate plummeted from 44.22 mishaps per 100,000 flight hours in 1947 to 2.33 mishaps in 1983 and has held steady around 1.5 mishaps since. The Air Force implemented the Operational Risk Management (ORM) program in 1996 in an effort to protect their most valuable resources: aircraft and aviators. An AFIT thesis conducted in 1999 by Capt Park Ashley studied the Army similar Risk Management (RM) program. Ashley concluded that since his …